Parks Associates announces speakers for CONNECTIONS™ digital home sessions at 2006 International CES

Parks Associates, the leading research analysts studying the digital home, today announced the participating executives for the six CONNECTIONS™ sessions it will host at 2006 International CES on January 5-6, 2006.

The CONNECTIONS™ sessions at CES will feature industry executives, moderated by Parks Associates’ analysts, and examine key topics for the connected home, including portable entertainment devices, home networking, digital distribution of media, and global consumer research on digital products and services.

“In 2005, U.S. consumers will spend more than $200 billion on entertainment products and services – and that amount will continue to increase over the years,” said Kurt Scherf, vice president and principal analyst for Parks Associates. “These sessions will examine the consumer and technological trends driving this growth – and what CES attendees can do to capitalize on the many opportunities within these industries.”

2006 International CES will take place January 5-8, 2006, at the Las Vegas Convention Center. The CONNECTIONS™ sessions will take place in the South Hall, Room S106/107:

Fun on the Run: Portable Entertainment Devices (Jan 5, 10:30 a.m.)
Reaching the Unreachable Consumer: Advertising in the Digital Age (Jan 5, 12:00 p.m.)
Making Media Meaningful: TV on Consumers’ Terms (Jan 5, 1:30 p.m.)
Next Steps Digital: Enabling a Whole-Home Entertainment Experience (Jan 5, 2:45 p.m.)
Making the Network Work (Jan 6, 10:30 a.m.)
Going Global: Understanding Buyer Preferences for Digital Services (Jan 6, 12:00 p.m.)

Confirmed speakers for the sessions include:

Robert Acker, Vice President, Music Services, RealNetworks, Inc.
Jamie Berger, Vice President & General Manager, Consumer Products Division, IGN Entertainment Inc.
Richard J. Caballero, Director, Product Line Mgt. DSL, SupportSoft
Ron Cates, Vice President, North America Sales & Marketing, Metalink
Christophe Duverne, Chairman, NFC Forum and Vice President, Marketing and Sales, Identification, Philips Semiconductors, Royal Philips Electronics, Semiconductor Division
Mark Cook, Director, Imaging Systems, Eastman Kodak Company
Dr. Beth Erez, VP Strategic Alliances, NDS
Scott Ferris, SVP and GM, Atlas On Demand
Inder Gopal, Chief Product Officer, Sereniti Inc.
Ed Graczyk, Director of Marketing & Communications, Microsoft Corporation
Seth Kenvin, Vice President of Strategic Marketing, BigBand Networks
Art Lancaster, CTO, Affinegy
Selina Lo, President & CEO, Ruckus Wireless (formerly Video54)
Ken Morse, Vice President, Client Architecture, Scientific-Atlanta
Francesco Prato, Business Development Manager for NFC, Philips Semiconductors
Paul Sandberg, Senior Vice President, Global Sales & Marketing, Business Unit Home, Philips Semiconductors, Philips
Steve Shannon, Founder and Executive Vice President, Akimbo
Scott Smyers, Vice President, Network and Systems Architecture, Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA)
Roland Van der Meer, CoFounder and Partner, ComVentures
Chris Wimmer, IPTV Product Marketing Manager, Microsoft Corporation
Dave Whetstone, Chief Marketing Officer, MobiTV
Russell Zack, Chief Operating Officer, Cauldron Solutions

CONNECTIONS™: The Digital Home Conference and Showcase, produced by Parks Associates in partnership with the Consumer Electronics Association, is the largest international executive conference for digital home technologies. Registration for these sessions is directly through CES. Please visit www.cesweb.org to register. In 2006, CONNECTIONS™ will take place May 2-4, 2006, at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, Calif. For information about sponsoring CONNECTIONS™, contact sales@parksassociates.com or call 972-490-1113.

About CONNECTIONS™
CONNECTIONS™: The Digital Living Conference and Showcase, hosted by leading research firm Parks Associates in partnership with the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA®), is the premier executive event focused on the market developments and growth factors for advanced digital lifestyle solutions.

CONNECTIONS™ sessions provide high-level research, knowledge, and analysis to over 1,000 executives from the converging industries developing products and services for consumers. Topics include IPTV and “TV 2.0,” bundled services, consumer storage, mobile applications and content, social and digital media, and home and lifestyle management.

For twelve years, the following industries have participated at CONNECTIONS™: new media, digital entertainment and gaming, home networks, Internet and television services, software and middleware, digital health, mobile applications and services, consumer electronics, and home control systems and security.

For information about CONNECTIONS™, contact sales@parksassociates.com or call 972-490-1113.

For information on speaking, sponsoring, or attending, please visit www.connectionsconference.com.